Controlling remote Windows devices [Web console]

To start remote control
  1. In a Web console device list, select the device you want to control.
  2. In the action pane, click the Properties tab > Remote control.

    You can also right-click the device and select Remote control.

The Ivanti Remote Control Viewer opens.

Once you've taken control of a remote device, its monitor appears in the main window of the viewer. If the remote control agent is loaded, the Connection messages pane in the viewer provides status information.

Using hot keys in remote control

To use hot keys in the remote control viewer

You must be actively remote controlling a device to use hot keys.

  1. With the focus on the viewer window, press the hot key combination for any one of the available actions.
  2. To quickly access hot keys, click the Send a special key sequence button on the toolbar and select a command.

To view commonly used hot keys and change their key sequence, click Tools > Options > Hot key settings tab in the remote control viewer.

NOTE: If you find that the hot keys don't work, the focus isn't on the Viewer window. If the border is blue/black, the focus isn't on the window. Click inside the window to change the border to yellow/black. Hot keys are now enabled.

Sending Ctrl+Alt+Delete Windows 7 and newer devices

The default local security policy on Windows 7 and newer won't allow Ctrl+Alt+Delete from a remote control viewer. To change this, do the following.

To allow Ctrl+Alt+Delete on Windows 7 and newer devices
  1. In the Start menu's search box, type gpedit.msc and press Enter.
  2. Navigate to Local Computer Policy > Administrative Templates > Windows Components > Windows Logon Options > Software Secure Attention Sequence.
  3. Double-click Disable or Enable Software Secure Attention Sequence.
  4. Click Enabled, and in the Options list click either Services or Services and Ease of Access applications.
  5. Click OK.

Navigating in the remote device screen

By default the Autoscroll option is enabled. When Autoscroll is enabled and you are remote controlling a device, place your cursor along the yellow/black border of the viewer window and scroll up, down, or side to side. The closer your cursor gets to the border, the faster the scrolling will occur.

You can disable Autoscroll. When you do this, the yellow/black border is replaced by window scroll bars if any part of the remote device's screen is obscured.

To disable Autoscroll in the remote control viewer
  1. Click Tools > Options and clear the Allow autoscroll check box.
  2. Click OK.
  3. Use the horizontal and vertical scroll bars to move the remote device's screen.

Drawing on the remote device screen

You can using basic draw tools to highlight an area of the screen on the remote device. The remote user sees what you draw, which can be helpful if you're showing something to the user to help them solve a problem.

To highlight part of the remote screen with draw tools
  1. In the remote control viewer, click the Highlight an area on the remote screen button.
  2. Use the options on the floating toolbar and draw on the remote screen.

Using a chat session with the remote user

As you run a remote control session, you can open a chat window with the remote device's user. This is useful when you're helping someone solve a problem or showing them how to perform a task.

To open a chat window with the remote user
  1. In the remote control viewer, click the Start/Stop a chat session button.
  2. Type a message in the box and click Send.
  3. To end the chat session, click Stop or click the toolbar button again.

The exchange of messages is displayed in the chat window. You can save the chat session to keep for future reference.

Viewing connection messages

The viewer window's Connection messages pane displays status messages sent to the status bar (such as remote control agent package exchanges). Messages remain in the list so you can:

  • View the history of the remote session
  • Diagnose problems with the session
  • Check whether the remote control agent is loaded
  • Check the status of the remote control agent
To view connection messages from the console
  • If the Connection messages pane isn't displayed, click View > Connection messages.

Saving connection messages

While you're in a remote control session, you have the option of saving the connection messages. These messages may be useful as an audit trail or if you need to troubleshoot any issues related to your remote control session.

To save connection messages
  1. In the viewer window, click File > Save connection messages.
  2. In the Save As dialog box, type a file name and save as a text file. The connection messages are saved to the My Documents folder by default.

If the remote control agent is loaded, the Connection messages window tells you that the agent is found and what protocol it's using. In the Web console device list, you will also see a magnifying glass icon appear on the device you selected when the session is established.

Executing programs remotely

In the viewer window, you can start any program on a remote device to diagnose issues.

To execute programs remotely
  1. In the toolbar's Run box, enter the path for the program you want to run. If you need to find the program, select Browse from the list.
  2. To run the program on the remote device, click the Remote execute button on the toolbar.

Transferring files to remote devices

You can use the remote control viewer window to transfer files between your machine and the remote device. This works as though you've mapped a drive to the remote device. You can only transfer files to/from devices that have the remote control agent installed.

This feature works even if you're not currently remote controlling a device as long as the connection has been created. The Run each Explorer window in a separate process option doesn't work with file transfer.

To transfer files to a device
  1. On the remote control viewer toolbar, click the Transfer files to the remote computer button.
  2. Select a file to transfer by clicking the filename. Right-click the file and select Copy, or select to drag and drop.
  3. Scroll down the Windows Explorer tree to Ivanti Remote Control. Below this, click the name of the remote device you're controlling.
  4. On the remote device, open a folder to paste the file to, then right-click and select Paste.

Similarly, you can also transfer files from a remote device to your device.

Shutting down and rebooting remote devices

You can remotely shut down or reboot devices. When you do, a message box appears on the remote device with a warning that the system will shut down in X seconds. If someone is currently at that machine they can click a Shutdownor Cancel button.

If no action is taken the reboot will happen when the countdown reaches 0.

If the device has applications open with unsaved data, those applications will probably interrupt the shutdown when they prompt for the user to save. You may have to remote control the device and save/close applications for the shutdown or reboot to work.

To reboot a remote device
  1. In the remote control viewer, click the Reboot the remote computer button on the toolbar.
  2. Enter a time for displaying a message box on the remote computer (maximum 300 seconds).
  3. Type a prompt to the user that will appear in the message box.
  4. To maintain the remote connection after the reboot, select the Continue session after reboot check box.
  5. To keep the settings you have entered as a default, select the Save these settings check box.

Configuring session options

There are several settings you can change to improve your use of the remote control viewer, such as changing display options, optimizing performance for your network, and changing key mappings for hot keys on the remote computer.

To configure remote session options
  1. In the remote control viewer, click Tools > Options.
  2. Make changes on the three pages of the dialog box as described below.
  3. When you have finished, click OK.

Change settings tab

  • Alow autoscroll: Enables the viewer window to scroll as you move the cursor closer to the yellow/black window border. When this option is cleared, the remote device window has horizontal and vertical scroll bars if part of the window is obscured.
  • Lock out the remote keyboard and mouse: Locks the device's keyboard and mouse so that only the user running the viewer window can control the remote device. Note that special key combinations in Windows such as "Ctrl+Alt+Delete" or the "Windows Key+L" aren't locked out.
  • Synchronize clipboards: Synchronizes the clipboards between the viewer console and the remote device so you can paste information between the two machines.
  • Hide the remote computer screen: Makes the remote device's screen blank so only the user running the viewer can see the display on the remote device.
  • Always ask to clear remote computer's screen: Rather than automatically clear the remote device's screen, this option displays a message box for the remote user to accept that the screen is cleared.
  • Lock the remote computer when the session ends: Locks the remote device when the session ends, so anyone at that device must provide credentials in order to use it again.
  • Auto keyboard mapping: Enables the keyboard layout of the viewer console to be used on the remote device.
  • Enable old agent compatibility: If you want to remote control a device with a Ivanti agent older than version 8.5, select this check box to enable the connection.
  • Use alternate names: Enables the use of alternate names for the person using the remote control viewer so that the actual login and computer names do not appear on the remote device. If you select this option, type the alternate names in the text boxes below.

Optimize performance tab

  • Optimize performance for: Select Modem, Broadband, LAN, or Custom as appropriate for your network environment. (These options are also available on the Optimize performance for connection speed toolbar button.)
  • Use mirror driver on remote computer: Loads the mirror driver for enhanced performance on slower machines. This driver can reduce the amount of time required to see the target machine's desktop and increase the visual quality of the targeted desktop's image. It can be useful if the remote control agent is to be downloaded over the Internet or installed on machines by users who do not have administrative rights.
  • Suppress remote wallpaper: Speeds up the viewing rate by not displaying the remote device's background wallpaper. Some wallpapers can substantially slow down a remote control session.
  • Reduce the color depth: If you're connecting via a slow link or dial-up networking connection, this option reduces the amount of transferred color information. The closer you move the slider to full reduction, the more color artifacts (distortion) you might see.

Hot key settings tab

This page of the dialog box lists eleven hot key combinations that are used by the person running the remote control session to send commands to the remote computer. These hot keys are different than standard Windows key combinations because entering the standard keystrokes would initiate the command on the computer running the remote control viewer, not the remote computer.

To change a hot key, click in the box and press the key combination you want to use. The key combination (for example, Ctrl+Shift+T) is entered for you in the box.